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SAD Hype Playlist

  • Post Author
    by Music director
  • Post Date
    Fri Feb 28 2020

by Monique McCormack

It's that time of the year where us kids with Seasonal Affective Disorder start really loathing another few months of gray, lifeless days that make us feel numb. I know that these Vitamin D-lacking, absolutely uninspiring winter evenings really pack a punch — in the worst way. Instead of avoiding those feelings of bleak hopelessness, this playlist embraces them with some uptempo hype music paradoxically paired with melancholy lyrics. 

“Freeze Frame” by Typhoon Roulette, Johnny High, Mud.Jpg

“Sober Up” by AJR, Rivers Cuomo

This band  of three brothers have progressed from empty party-loving songs like “I'm Ready” to the thorough reflection of the dark reality hidden under the alluring veil of alcohol-induced escapism. Jumping between the innocent joys of childhood and the pursuit of the out-of-reach contentedness that accompanies maturity, AJR pleads for now-elusive emotion.

“Autopilot” by Quinn XCII

Midwest native Quinn XCII depicts the muddled, driftlike way individuals with depression wander aimlessly through their days. He abruptly realizes that it seems like he is on autopilot, helplessly looking at his life through a reflective haze. 

“Nice Guy” by courtship.

This synth-ridden energetic song describes the dilemmas the accompany of growing and changing. Nostalgia can trick you into missing the person you once were and thinking that somewhere in the past you lost your way. The artist reflects on how easy it was to be a kind person, but how now something as simple as kindness is unusually difficult. 

“Visions” by Kevin Curtois, Leah Kate

The bouncy, abrupt electronic beat of the chorus on this track is complemented by the smooth verses sung by a relatively calm, light female voice. This song emphasizes the feeling of being helplessly stuck in a mindset. 

“Rain” by Azizi Gibson

The title is self-evident right from the start of this jam: the drip-dropping offbeats build into a defiant chorus in which the singer refutes judgements made about him. It's easy to feel isolated and misunderstood, and Gibson emphasizes these feelings with lyrics such as “I dare you to say again I'm something I'm not,” and “sometimes I can't even feel the pain.” 

“Fallen” by Milky Chance

Off of their most recent album Mind the Moon, German band Milky Chance uses their unique sound to describe their nightmare-like pre-destination to be “fallen.” The powerlessness to stop his fate is compared to the inevitability of rain. 

“Freeze Frame” by Typhoon Roulette, Johnny High, Mud.Jpg

Abusing alcohol is a common theme in this song, an appealing method of temporary evasion of reality. This song focuses on how alcohol has made Typhoon Roulette drift away from his girlfriend, but he does nothing to stop it.

“Watch” by Curtis Williams

Williams triumphant rapps claims of success over a melancholy mumbled female voice. What gives this song depth is the underlying lyric, “Tell me is this what you're looking for?”that hints that the lifestyle he has embraced may lead him the wrong way. 

“Balance” by Boslen

With his trademark heavy bass and flowing chime-like background, Boslen contemplates heartbreak, his desire for “balance” or centeredness and his general feeling of disorientation.

“Feel Nothing” by ASTN

This upbeat, flirty-sounding song demonstrates the apathy that prevents the lyricist from establishing meaningful relationships. His desperation to feel is reflected in his pursuit of a one-night stand.

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